A SIX-YEAR-OLD boy has been removed from prestigious Trinity Grammar School and at least eight others offered counselling after a string of sexual abuses among the Year One pupils.

The abuses involved the boys getting naked and performing sex acts on each other in the school toilets and playground while they were supposed to be supervised.

Stunned Year One parents were only told of the most recent shocking events after the school holidays had begun and were refused a refund of their $18,000 fees if they removed their sons next term.

“Six-year-old boys should not be doing this to other six-year-old boys at school,” said one furious mother. “Clearly the playground and toilets were not supervised. Why didn’t they notice the boys were missing?”

The Anglican school called in the Department of Family and Community Services (FACS) after it was contacted by a concerned parent in mid-November.

An investigation was begun but the main instigator was allowed to remain at the school’s Summer Hill campus.

It was revealed today, parents were kept in the dark for more than a week after it was discovered a group of boys were performing sex acts on each other.

Trinity Grammar claims it notified the authorities immediately after learning that six-year-old boys were displaying sexualised behaviours in the school toilets and parts of the playground.

But headmaster Milton Cujes today said the FACS had requested that parents “not be advised while they were investigating”.

“FACS advised eight days later that the school could disclose events to parents of the boys directly involved,” he said in a statement.

Parent’s reaction

“This has been handled appallingly,” the mother said.

“An email was sent out on the second day of the school holidays and that’s when I realised my son had been undressing for swimming with this boy right up to the end of term.”

The school is led by headmaster Milton Cujes.Source:News Corp Australia

The email from head Mr Milton Cujes told parents of “weighty matters” that involved one boy being withdrawn because of “instances of inappropriate sexualised behaviour by some of our Year One boys”.

The outraged parents demanded a meeting at which Mr Cujes told them there would be no refund of their term fees if they pulled their sons out of the school.

“He basically said that they would replace any of our sons that left with another from their lengthy waiting list ,” the mother said.

Allegations

It is alleged the instigator encouraged three other boys to engage in sex acts with at least four other victims in the school toilets and parts of the playground.

Parents are concerned about the long term effects the current scandal will have on theirSource:istock

After the meeting Mark Dunn, master of the junior school, sent the parents a lengthy email detailing the measures the school had undertaken while FACS officials conducted the investigation, including greater supervision of toilets and counselling.

Mr Dunn told parents that next term there would be increased and “vigilant supervision” of boys.

The mother said: “It’s their job to know what’s happening in the school.”

In a written response to The Daily Telegraph Mr Cujes would not confirm how many boys had been involved in the incident.

“It would be appropriate to say that we believe it was a very small group,” he said.

Mr Cujes said as soon as the school became aware of what was going on, it notified FACS and commenced its own investigation.

The outside of the school this week.Source:News Corp Australia

“The school is reviewing if there is a need to make any alterations to facilities or procedures to strike the right balance between privacy and supervision,” he said.

Mr Cujes said the affected boys were offered counselling and “the parent of one child has elected to withdraw their boy from the school.”

A FACS spokesman said the department could not comment on the case.

Trinity’s poor school report

— In 2001 four Year 10 boarders were charged over sexual assaults on boys, including using a woodendildo called the “anaconda”. They pleaded guilty to assault and were given bonds. Two of their victims were awarded settlements of $500,000 each by the school.

— Last year former Trinity teacher Neil Futcher was charged with multiple offences including the indecent assault of students as young as 11.

— As many as eight Year 8 students were expelled after an incident involving cannabis on the school grounds. Police left discipline to the school.